Final White Papers

In 2007, the Department initiated a stakeholder process to review legislative reforms for the Site Remediation Program. A series of 11 draft white papers summarizing the topics discussed were posted on this Web site. Comments were received from the stakeholders on the draft white papers and posted on the Web site on Oct 11, 2007. Final versions of these white papers are now being posted.

One of the results of the stakeholder process is the development of legislative reforms. These reforms will be presented at a Joint Senate and Assembly hearing on April 15th.

The Department's recommendations include, but are not limited to

licensing environmental consultants who perform remedial investigations and actions in New Jersey;

remedy selection, including incentives for permanent remedies;

developing an engineering and institutional controls permit process;

standards for replacement of underground storage tanks;

strengthening site remediation enforcement;

establishing a remediation guarantee fund to protect against remedy failure and cover future order of magnitude changes;

expanding the use of the Hazardous Discharge Site Remediation Fund; and

expanding local notification requirements related to the changes in use of contaminated sites.

These topics are priorities for the Department because they address improvements to our business practices, which will allow the Department to remediate contaminated sites more effectively. Testimony will also focus on reforms that allow the Department to address large caseloads while dealing with declining resources. These reforms are intended to ensure protective cleanups and encourage remediating parties to act more expeditiously so cases move forward, property is returned to productive use and municipalities are not burdened with warehoused sites.

Following testimony, the Site Remediation Program expects continued discussions as we proceed to implement these recommendations for reform.